Linked-In has provided companies the option of uploading company banners on their page, for free!

One of the most powerful HR focused websites, LinkedIn continues to grow in terms of the contacts generated and career opportunities provided on this website. The most important evolution in this social media site is that it has become a very important and easy key to build brands and create brand awareness among potential customers.

LinkedIn continues to grow in this aspect and with 2013 bringing more accessibility in terms of mobile technology; one can expect a lot more from Linked-In in the coming year. You will be able to generate more leads and also acquire more traffic on your profile.

Company awareness incentives

According to reports by Experian Marketing Services, the number of US visits alone on Linked-In hit figures close to 94 Million in December 2012. This was a 40% increase in comparison to the figures recorded in December 2011. Therefore, one of the most important trends to look forward to this year is increasing the visits on your profile and generating more leads. Making the brand more visible is one of the first steps in creating brand awareness. Therefore, Linked-In has provided companies the option of uploading company banners on their page, for free! Three linkable banners may be added to the products and services page. These links allow you to direct customers to testimonials, your popular blosposts, promotional videos and even other social media platforms that your company is available on.

Multimedia status updates

One popular trend in the previous year was tailored status updates that were directed towards Linked-In connections. Now, an additional feature is available to make your page more interesting for visitors. One can also upload pictures and files to the status updates. That way, any information that you need to pass on to your customers or partners stands out and receives more information. This is going beyond the ‘timeline look’ that Linked-In profiles acquired recently. One thing that page owners must keep in mind is that the picture needs to be updated before the status is updated. If you have 200 or more connections in your audience list, you can even select a specific target group for your status update in order to direct a controlled traffic towards a product or service.

Lead Collection Widget

The latest trend in Linked-In is the Lead Collection Widget. This can be added easily to the landing page on your website and allows you to increase your leads considerably. Any potential lead who wishes to be contacted by you can simply leave their email ids by clicking on the widget that is seen on the top of your website. This is a convenient option for those who do not wish to use the company contact form in order to contact you. This is a great option as most of your visitors may be mobile device users who cannot type all details easily.

One cannot rule out trends like mobile advertising with mobile applications becoming more popular over the last few years. This is expected to be one of the primary revenue models for most social media platforms including Linked-In.